The Best (and Cheapest) NYC Alt and Indie Comedy Shows This Week

October 2, 2013

Leah Bonnema hosts The Modern Philosophers at The Creek and the Cave this Thursday

It’s an all-nerd pick this week, as the city prepares to welcome New York Comic Con. We have all manner of geeked-out funny people for you, from rapping improv dorks and Merrie Melody fans, to Texan history enthusiasts and men who name stand-up albums after Founding Fathers of American Commerce. Grab your doctor’s note and get comfortable on the losers’ bench: here are the nerdiest comedy picks to date.

Wednesday, October 2nd

The Guest RoomTandem Bar, 8:30 p.m. Free
The list of people with comedy albums named after Secretaries of the U.S. Treasury is short. But John Roy’sAlexander Hamilton is without doubt the best, and he headlines this debut Bushwick show at venerable neighborhood watering hole Tandem. Cheerful hosts Bob Palos and Ronnie Fleming also welcome top New York beard-owner Andy Sandford, alongside Koshin Egal and Chris Calogero.

The Modern PhilosophersThe Creek and the Cave, 9 p.m. FreeLeah Bonnema and Tim Warner, two of the funniest working comics in New York, host a relaxed monthly showcase interspersed with classic Merry Melodies and Hanna Barbera cartoons. Between acts, they dissect the life lessons imparted by the Gospels according to Daffy, Porky and those other Great Apostles of American Silliness, Tweety and Sylvester. An open vodka bar is also laid on for audience members from 8.30pm, saucing you up real good for your headliner, Daily Show alumnus Wyatt Cenac.

Friday, October 4thTake It PersonalUCBeast, 9 p.m. $10DJ Cipha Sounds from Hot 97 FM and Chappelle’s Show believes he has uncovered the ancient connection between hip-hop and Improv, and who are we to argue? This show features a surprise rap star sharing amazing true life stories and regular hip-hop shenanigans (Cristal, haters, beefs, etc.), inspiring the city’s best stage performers to create a fully improvised show on the spot.

Creaghead and CompanyUnion Hall, 8 p.m. $7
Making video tapes is the comedian’s equivalent of chefs publishing their recipes: they’ve tested a set of jokes to destruction, and found the perfect blend of beats and punches to delight a crowd. Time to commit them to digital perpetuity and begin the next round of sharpening new material. Tonight, three of the best young comic talents in he country each lay down a new 30 minute set: Mark Normand, Nick Turner, and Barry Rothbart (see above), combining to produce a stand out night of stand-up.

Monday, October 7th1770-somethingUCB Chelsea, 8 p.m. $5
Ever wonder what a musical version of America’s origin would look like… if based on the rabidly conservative Texas Board of Education history textbook? Well, wonder no more! Watch and marvel as Jesus Christ helps build a nation that’s courageous, pious, and gun-crazy enough to give his precious Constitution to. But will the evil King Barack Hussein George III get in his way? There’s only one way to find out.

Tuesday, October 8th404ing It: Breaking (Down) The InternetUCBeast, 8 p.m. $5
You’re a nerd, right? Right. So come on down to UCB’s haven for you people: 404ing It. This week’s performance is dedicated to New York Comic Con, featuring the hosts of the Matt and Brett Love Comics podcast, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon writer Mike Drucker, and the Godfather of Nerd-core hip-hop MC Chris. Bring your inhaler: it’s going to get wheezy.
Tom Cowell is a comedian. Follow him on Twitter @mrtomcowell. Email voicecheaplaughs@gmail.com with all listing suggestions.